Independent journalism on fracking, onshore oil and gas and the reactions to it

Ryedale council officers recommend objection to fracking application

Ryedale District Council in North Yorkshire is being recommending to object to Third Energy’s planning application to frack an existing gas well at Kirby Misperton.

Council officials said the company had not provided enough information for them to decide what impact the proposal would have on a historic bridge and other local heritage.

Ryedale District Council is a statutory consultee on the planning application and does not make the final decision.

A report by council officers in advance of a meeting of Ryedale’s planning committee next Tuesday (10th November) recommends objection to the application. The officers concluded:

“Inadequate information has been submitted for the Local Planning Authority to be able to properly assess the full impacts of the proposal on both designated and non-designated heritage assets.“

It said the application was therefore contrary to national and local planning policy.

The council’s building conservation officer said heavy goods vehicles delivering to the site would cross the Grade II listed bridge over Costa Beck. The officer said:

“There is no proper assessment for the impact of the development on this designated heritage asset”

Third Energy said “non-designated heritage assets” could also be affected if the application were approved. But the officer said there was no assessment in the application. The officer added:

“The application as currently submitted therefore fails to satisfy the requirement that designated and non-designated heritage assets have been properly assessed as part of the EIA [Environmental Impact Assessment] process.”

Ryedale’s report concluded the proposal was contrary to the National Planning Policy Framework and Policy SP12 – Heritage in the adopted development plan.

Moratorium call

On 8th October 2015, Ryedale District Council passed a resolution calling for a five –year moratorium on fracking in the district and to take this into account when making its recommendation. But the officers’ report advised:

“The resolution of Ryedale District Council does not suspend the operation of the planning system in relation to the determination of planning applications for fracking by the County or the exercise of the District Council’s discretion to make a consultation response in relation to a fracking application.”

More information and new consultation

The decision on Third Energy’s application will be made by North Yorkshire County Council later this year or early in 2016.

We reported on 20th October (DrillOrDrop post) that North Yorkshire had asked Third Energy for more information about the application.

Further documents from Third Energy are now on the application’s web pages. You can find them on the Documents tab, under the section “RESPONSE OF THE APPLICANT TO THE COUNTY PLANNING AUTHORITY’S REQUEST FOR FURTHER INFORMATION UNDER REGULATION 22”.

A consultation on that information began yesterday and runs until 25th November.

No date has been set for a decision but North Yorkshire County Council will now not meet the target date of 18th November 2015, which is 16 weeks after the application was validated..

Ryedale District Council officers have recommended that no decision is made until the additional information has been consulted on.

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That’s fine but still I note, nothing in that application at all about: which water supplies are being used, what precautions is the water industry deploying to ensure over abstraction doesn’t lead to drought and scorching of the environment along with hazardous pollutants contaminating the landscape…we see in California drought still operates since 2012, weather experts say this is due to lack of water not normal weather conditions, and they are having to drink treated pee and excrement now to make up for shortages in the water supply–depleted after mass fracking.

We also need to know where is the toxic sludge going to be buried. In the US it was poured down the holes drillers made and left to create major environmental hazards, and given the EA now run by Fracker Browne, I have little trust that they will be seen enforcing rules on toxic waste any time soon, Monsanto already buried agent orange in Wales sloppily and it is left to locals to notice heinous desecration and report it, before those paid to deal with overseeing its disposal get out of their cosy office to take a look and do something about enforcing the regulations.

Monsanto and Syngenta already play ”big boy with toy drill” at Leeds uni and Syngenta have toxic sludge deposits at Bradley in Huddersfiled…google it to see what a blot on the landscape it is, and it seems ahead of TTIP there are trade agreements with two of the most heinous immoral and unethical corporates on the planet, already operating in the Yorkshire area, as well as other areas in the country and Wales.

I expect, as with Lancashire, we soon will be told to drink only boiled water once supplies get lower and polluted, with NYCC and the EA saying nothing to do with us…or ”we must look at this and see what lessons can be learned”

Well I am so glad there is to be a moratorium because quite frankly this whole saga is moving from the ridiculous to the sublime.. All these planners and MP’s and EA and other departments talking about where to put the drill when in fact no one but no one is accountable to tell what will happened to:
biocides dropped into wells
toxic sludge—or is the billions of pounds of gov money given for free to drill companies justified due to them being contracted to dig holes in Africa to bury more of our waste?
abstraction levels not consistent with forecasts by the WWF (report: Rich Countries Poor Water) pre frack roll out, telling us that water above Yorkshire region and below Lancashire region circa early 2000 will be not enough for the population by 2070.

I could go on but here is a link to what happens when the government doesn’t seem to offer taxpayers DWI ( Department Water Industry—London based quango currently tasked with being competitive on a global scale) accountability, but shuffles us off to the local water industry who are set to profit from selling abstraction licences and NOBODY at all is saying where the toxic sludge is going to be housed.

Here are links to two accounts of why we need to know more about this before any planning app is looked at by councils:

The second link takes you to a page where there is a whole lot more of page links with credible reporting on why we need to look at what is happening in planning apps to WATER because I am finding it difficult to track who is avoiding telling us anything about plans for abstraction, plans for putting it in drill holes with biocides, and plans for taking it out and making sure it all comes out, and where is it to be stored…..and what measures are in place for drought years, as in California where fracking is leaving desertification on so many levels and is now causing years of drought.